This invention relates to a curtain valance or top treatment. Specifically, curtain rods and curtain rings are covered with fabric which provides a valance or top treatment for the curtain and a pleasing effect to a room. One application is to shower curtains.
Showers used for bathing generally consist of a spray head positioned at an elevated location within an enclosure capable of catching and draining water. In stall type and bathtub enclosures, it is common to use a horizontally traversable, flexible curtain that allows passage in and out of the shower enclosure. The curtain, when moved to its fully closed position, prevents water from escaping the enclosure. The curtain also provides privacy and a decorative effect, depending on the material used.
One important problem with maintaining a decorative look is where the shower curtain is suspended by curtain rings or hooks from a curtain rod. The curtain rings are generally made of plastic, metal or wood and do not create a pleasing appearance in so far as they are made of a material different from or uncomplementary to the fabric used for the shower curtain. The curtain rod also does not create a pleasing appearance when the curtain rod is made of a material different from or uncomplementary to the shower curtain. This same problem occurs with windows and other curtain applications using rods and rings.
While patents exist for making the curtain and the rings of the same material, such as for instance, Wilson, U.S. Pat. No. 4,120,343, as well as Thompson, U.S. Pat. No. 2,011,662, there is no specific teaching in any of these patents of coating or covering ordinary plastic, metal or wood curtain rings and curtain rods with a fabric that matches or complements the curtain to create a pleasing effect.
Valances, made of a short drapery, wood or metal frame, have long been used as a decorative heading to conceal the top of curtains. However, they require the expense and labor of adding a complicated structure to the walls or ceiling. It would be desirable to have a valance or top treatment that does not require the expense and labor of adding an additional structure. Moreover, it would be desirable to provide a valance or top treatment that installs with ease.
It is, accordingly, an object of the present invention to provide a fabric covering for curtain rods and rings.
It is another object of this invention to provide a fabric covering for curtain rods and rings which can match or complement the curtain and room.
It is another object of this invention to provide a fabric covering for curtain rods and rings which enables the curtain to be opened and closed.
It is still another object of this invention to provide a decorative curtain valance or top treatment that installs with ease and without the expense and labor of adding an additional structure.
These and other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following descriptions.